


Twentieth Century Boy

by MenacingPlatypus



Series: All Our Worlds Collide [1]
Category: The Last Kingdom (TV)
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, Family Dynamics & Dysfunction, Fluff, Friendship, Just a little jealous, M/M, Meddling, Modern AU, These boys and their drama
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:09:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25311391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MenacingPlatypus/pseuds/MenacingPlatypus
Summary: Weddings and families and lifelong love affairs, oh my.
Relationships: Eadith & Finan, Eadith & Uhtred, Finan/Uhtred of Bebbanburg
Series: All Our Worlds Collide [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1969150
Comments: 37
Kudos: 27





	1. Something About Us

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I hadn't ever planned on a modern AU, but thanks to a prompt from solarlotus, here we are.

It might not be the right time  
I might not be the right one  
But there's something about us I want to say  
Cause there's something between us anyway

I might not be the right one  
It might not be the right time  
But there's something about us I've got to do  
Some kind of secret I will share with you

I need you more than anything in my life  
I want you more than anything in my life  
I'll miss you more than anyone in my life  
I love you more than anyone in my life

Something About Us - Daft Punk

\---

Eadith sidles up behind him at the bar as he brings the glass to his lips. “That’s quite a lot of staring you’re doing.”

Uhtred nearly chokes and he frowns disapprovingly at her. “I’m not staring,” he objects somewhat indignantly, placing his glass down.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Eadith says, not sounding apologetic in the least, “I didn’t realize it was secret staring. Bit misleading since you’re doing it right here, in the open, where anyone can see you. Not staring.” Tilting her head subtly in the direction of the table where Uhtred knows Aethelflaed is sitting, Eadith widens her eyes at Uhtred.

“That boyfriend of yours was looking for you,” Uhtred grumbles at her, not wanting to be reminded of his ex-wife’s eyes following him. They had split on fairly amicable terms, but he hasn’t seen her in over a year and he’d noticed her trying to catch his eye during the ceremony. Aethelflaed has a keen eye for weakness and he’s had far too much to drink today to endure her scrutiny up close. Thankfully there’s a number of people at the wedding she hasn’t seen for a while and she’s been kept busy. Until now.

“She’s coming over,” Eadith says through a big smile as she waves at Aethelflaed over Uhtred’s shoulder. “Good luck,” she whispers, eyes dancing with mirth. Uhtred scrunches his face fiercely at his friend and employee as she breezes off, but she just smiles sweetly at him. Eadith likes Aethelflaed and Uhtred knows his ex-wife feels the same, which he has always been grateful for, but they could take pity on him at least sometimes. Taking a deep breath, Uhtred resists the urge to look over his shoulder. Instead he swallows the contents of his glass in one go. He had slowed down before dinner, but now seems as good a time as any to resume the course of getting shitfaced.

Aethelflaed is drinking the champagne, same as Eadith, and she places her flute on the bar delicately. She’s beautiful as always, a classic beauty as Uhtred’s mother would have said, and he really is pleased to see her looking well.

“Hello Uhtred,” her voice is high and melodious as her eyes smile at him. She has always looked at him this way, as if she knows something he doesn’t.

“It’s good to see you,” he says, leaning forward to kiss her cheek. She turns into him and his lips catch the corner of her mouth. Up close her eyes are even more striking and Uhtred realizes he’s lingered a little longer than is socially appropriate, but she doesn’t seem to mind. 

Aethelflaed looks out over the dance floor at Ragnar and Brida swaying intimately to the slow song. “Our wedding was beautiful,” she says, sounding strangely nostalgic.

Uhtred snorts, unable to help himself. “I don’t imagine you’d say the same about our marriage.”

Now she gives him a real smile and Uhtred feels a familiar tug. The thoroughly insane part of his brain starts to whisper that maybe this is just what he needs. The bedroom was perhaps the only part of their relationship that had been free of issues and he’s not worried about Aethelflaed wanting to move back in. The company she transferred overseas to establish is flourishing and she does look happy. An uncommon occurrence during the months before their separation.

“Quite a lot of it was good,” she reminds him, still smiling as she shifts a step closer.

“Yeah, it was,” he agrees, grinning warmly at her. The buzz of alcohol in his brain that is desperately determined to shift his focus from Finan on the other side of the room threatens to override his common sense. 

\---

“Just what the fuck am I lookin’ at?” Eadith glances over as Finan leans on the bar next to her. Aside from the heavier accent, Eadith finds it hard to gauge how drunk he is, the Irishman tends to be upright and uproarious until he’s passed out on the floor.

“My new dress,” Eadith suggests, playing dumb. “I wasn’t sure about the pink at first, but I like it.” Twisting back and forth she makes innocent eyes at Finan when he frowns at her.

She understands things are exceptionally complicated when it comes to Uhtred and his oldest friend, but Eadith finds all the dancing around ridiculous. Especially when everything seems to be going so smoothly since Finan’s return from Ireland a few years ago. The rift between the two men created in the aftermath of Gisela’s death has vanished and the ink is long dry on Uhtred’s most recent divorce. However, Eadith hasn’t been able to ferret out any signs that Uhtred and Finan are anything other than friends and she is an excellent sleuth.

“It is a lovely dress, dear, but I’m talking about what’s happening over yonder, there,” he prompts, without looking at the table where Uhtred and Aethelflaed sit much closer than is strictly necessary chatting away. Eadith looks over her shoulder as Finan hisses, “Don’t look,” and she has to muffle a burst of laughter with her hand. They’re both staring into the mirror behind the bar now and Finan gives her outraged eyes in its reflection. She can’t help it though, Finan and Uhtred can be the worst, even when they’re not sleeping together. Especially when they’re not sleeping together.

“Sihtric would be laughing with me, if he were here,” Eadith says matter-of-factly, smirking at Finan in the mirror as the bartender brings her another drink.

Finan grins at her sarcastically. “Perhaps he would, but he’s busy in some bloody coat closet somewhere, so you’re on your own.”

“Ugh,” Eadith says, grimacing and taking a drink, “I could have done without that.”

Finan asks the bartender for another beer and something fruity she imagines is for the dark-haired girl he’s been dancing with and goes right back to staring at Eadith, eyebrows raised. When the bartender deposits the drinks on the bar, Eadith isn’t sure if it’s just the handful of cocktails she’s already sucked back, but she’s suddenly fed up.

“Maybe you should go over there and ask them?” She says briskly, meeting Finan’s eyes. “You could take your bridesmaid for company.” Raising her eyebrows back at him, Eadith challenges him to argue with her, but instead of the annoyance she expected Finan just clenches his jaw and grabs his drinks from the bar. He’s only a handful of steps away before Eadith regrets goading him. With a sigh, she downs the rest of her drink and goes off in search of her boyfriend, the only date at this wedding she should be concerned with. 

\---

Gravel crunches quietly under Finan’s increasingly uncomfortable dress shoes as he weaves between vehicles in the parking lot looking for Eadith’s car. The noise from the hall is dim in the background and Finan is drunk. Eadith had sent him out here to grab her sweater before they take a cab to their shared home and Finan is grateful for the fresh air. Ragnar and Brida have been together for ages, but Finan is pleased to see them finally formalize their union. Although, Finan could probably have enjoyed the festivities a little less he thinks, rubbing a over his face. It’s getting late and even though the Ragnarsons will undoubtedly be going for hours longer, Finan was relieved when Eadith said she was leaving and offered to join her. Uhtred had disappeared to see Aethelflaed into her ride, supposedly, but the Dane had been gone for a while, a fact Finan tries hard not to fixate on.

“Looking a bit unsteady on your feet there, Irishman,” Speak of the devil.

Finan’s eyes scan the crowded parking lot and find Uhtred leaning against someone’s car a handful of vehicles over. He’s not looking much better than Finan feels.

“Are you smoking weed?” Finan asks, amused as he watches Uhtred exhale a cloud of smoke.

Shrugging, Uhtred gives a lopsided grin. “I took it off Erik’s oldest, kid can’t be more than thirteen.” Finan chuckles and joins Uhtred, leaning against the cool metal of the car and holds out his hand. He’s very aware of where Uhtred’s fingers brush his as they pass the joint between them and they enjoy a comfortable silence for a few moments.

Curiosity gets the better of Finan and his tongue feels loose in his mouth as he asks, “Aethelflaed get home, alright?” Uhtred’s suit jacket disappeared hours ago and the Dane’s loosened the top two buttons of his white dress shirt. Finan finds the exposed patch of skin unbelievably distracting.

Uhtred’s eyes are on the stars and he nods, “Aldhelm drove her back to the hotel.”

Relief settles in Finan’ stomach and he shakes his head. “That poor bastard,” Finan jokes and Uhtred chortles with him.

“She’ll give him a chance one of these days,” Uhtred muses, offering the joint again to Finan, but the Irishman waves him off. Flicking the remainder into the gravel, Uhtred doesn’t look over as he asks casually “Is Eadith waiting for you?”

Finan’s mouth feels clumsy as he replies, “She’s not in a hurry.”

Uhtred turns and closing the distance between them, leans in and presses his forehead to Finan’s. Their eyes stay locked and Finan can hear his heart beating in his ears. All Finan’s carefully cultivated resolve crumbles as soon as Uhtred’s lips touch his and soon he’s slipping his hands under Uhtred’s untucked shirt in order to caress the smooth skin of his sides. It has been too long.

After Gisela’s death and the ensuing fallout, Finan had gone back to Ireland to care for his dying aunt and Finan cannot remember a time when he was so unhappy, even compared to when he lived under his brother’s thumb. His aunt had been the only decent one though and Finan balked at the idea that she would go alone. She faded for two years and Finan was glad to be there, to care for her, but after six months in Ireland he was desperate to be in the home he had created here.

The first three months that Finan was gone was the longest period he can remember not speaking with Uhtred since they met as teenagers. It was a gaping hole in his life that he carried with him until Uhtred phoned out of the blue one day. Finan can remember exactly where he was standing when he saw the familiar number on his screen, can remember the squeezed feeling of his chest and the mix of anger and regret and hurt that came with it. He hadn’t answered that first call, but later that day he couldn’t resist a second time. It was painfully hard at first, but slowly the learned how to talk to each other again. They continued to speak on the phone at least every few days until Finan finally came home. Sometimes a few minutes, sometimes hours.

It was a while before he noticed through the calls that Aethelflaed had become a permanent fixture in Uhtred’s life, but he understood it. Finan never talked of coming home, and Uhtred never asked him to. But then his aunt died and it was all Finan wanted. Wanted it so bad he was back in a few short weeks. It had been a bittersweet homecoming, certainly. Despite the pull that still very obviously existed between him and Uhtred, Finan could also see that Aethelflaed was the best the family could hope for. She cared for Uhtred’s children the same as she did her own daughter and she loved Uhtred, that much was clear. The bitterest part of Finan’s heart would snipe silently about how she had always wanted a chance with the Dane, had carried a torch for him for years, but there had always been Gisela and Uhtred saw no one, but her. And Finan.

Not long after Finan’s homecoming, Uhtred had asked if there was a future for them as lovers, eyes soft and uncertain, hands hesitate on Finan’s hips and it had taken every ounce of will the Irishman possessed to say no. It’s what’s best for the children, for Uhtred, Finan had thought then, but the sorrow and defeat reflected back at him in Uhtred’s eyes has never left him. Neither has the regret that settled like a stone in his stomach not long after and that has only grown heavier since.

The memory returns to Finan as he kneads the skin of Uhtred’s waist and feels their tongues glide against each other. He had desperately wanted to say yes, in that moment he hadn’t cared about Aethelflaed, or any of the reasons he’d convinced himself of over and over. None of that would matter as long as Uhtred belonged to him again. That same feeling surges in his chest now and there is no reason not to anymore, only fear and habitual denial.

Unfortunately, Finan has not had enough to drink to disregard the fact that they are in a parking lot, ripe to be stumbled upon. Finan presses a button on Eadith’s keys in his pocket and hears her SUV chirp somewhere to their right. Returning his hand to Uhtred, Finan does his best not to break the searing kiss while he encourages Uhtred to back up with gentle pressure on his hips, but the Dane pulls away.

Brow furrowed, Uhtred’s eyes on intent on Finan’s mouth as he opens his own to inquire, but Finan beats him to it. “Car,” Finan grunts as he wraps a hand around Uhtred’s neck to pull him back in. They manage to stumble their way to the car that way and Finan’s head swims as they slide into Eadith’s backseat. It’s not the venue Finan would have preferred for their reunion, but he can’t stop his fingers from unbuttoning Uhtred’s shirt, nor his mouth from following their path, eliciting a series of sighs and moans.

Before Finan gets too far though, Uhtred urges him upright with a firm hand on his shoulder and then back against the far door. The sound of their breathing is loud while Finan watches entranced as Uhtred’s hands deftly unbutton the Irishman’s pants and pull the fabric lower onto his hips.

“Uhtred,” Finan pants, cutting himself off with a groan as Uhtred takes his cock into the feverish heat of his mouth. Uhtred begins a deep rhythm and his tongue curls, slowly at first then more quickly, until Finan is falling apart beneath his hands and mouth. It’s enough for Finan to forget he’s in the back of Eadith’s SUV in the gravel parking lot of a wedding until his phone falls from his slackened pocket and vibrates noisily against the floor. While it’s easy enough to ignore the first call with his eyes rolling into the back of his head and the second, as he comes moaning Uhtred’s name on a strangled exhalation, but the two text messages that follow make him growl, “Who the fuck is that?”

As soon as he sees Eadith’s name on the screen, Finan curses again, and he’s further disappointed when Uhtred leans back, wiping his mouth. “Rude to keep the lady waiting,” Uhtred says breathlessly, avoiding Finan’s eye, and then he’s opening the door and escaping into the night.

Swearing foully after the door closes behind his former lover, Finan works quickly to right his pants and follow, but another message, this one downright belligerent, pings at him. He ignores it to swing open the heavy door, but Uhtred is already far ahead of him. Finan leans against the vehicle, boneless and exhausted, and after deliberately banging the back of his head a few times, calls Eadith to let her know he hasn’t died out here.

\---

“You’re here early,” Uhtred says, distractedly as he sorts through the piles of paper on his desk. Eadith takes a deep breath from her seat on the couch against his office wall and when Uhtred glances up he see her staring at him thoughtfully. “What?” He asks, puzzled by her silence.

Sitting up straight, Eadith claps her hands together and asks, “Can you take your boss hat off for a minute?”

Concerned now, Uhtred takes a seat and watches her carefully. “Sure,” he says slowly, “is everything alright?”

Pursing her lips, Eadith smiles tightly at him and says, “Like you, I want this project to go ahead.”

Uhtred interrupts her with a raised hand, “I thought you said this wasn’t about work?”

Waving at him to be quiet, Uhtred raises his eyebrows and sits back with his mouth shut. “Like I said,” she continues in a measured tone, “I want this to go well, so I was up exceptionally late working on that stupid proposal and the strangest thing happened.” Uhtred watches her warily. “I heard two not-so-little Irish feet wandering around his study and in its closet. I guess he thought I had fallen asleep at my desk downstairs, which hasn’t been unusual lately and is certainly more normal than him visiting his formal wear and winter coats in the middle of the night.”

A creeping feeling starts in Uhtred’s chest and a dozen different possibilities start to race through his mind. “Is Finan okay?” He asks, trying to keep the anxiety from his voice.

“He’s fine,” Eadith snaps dismissively, “I guess he has a bunch of your nudes hidden in the back of said closet, but he’s fine.” Uhtred freezes, feeling not unlike a deer about to be struck off the highway. “I mean,” Eadith continues, feigning nonchalance as though they’re discussing Finan’s stamp collection, but there is an exasperated edge to her tone, “I guess he rightly assumed his phone wasn’t a safe enough place for them and he is an old man in many ways, so okay, the closet.”

Uhtred opens his mouth, but it takes a second for his brain to catch up. “Why are you telling me this?” he asks finally.

“Because I knew it!” Eadith hisses loudly, a bizarrely triumphant expression on her face. Uhtred blinks, taken aback at her reaction. “I knew it,” she repeats, shaking her head, “the lingering looks, the fact that you avoid touching him like he’s got the fucking plague-”

Uhtred grimaces, he thought he was getting better at hiding. “Eadith, please, all that’s in the past.” He hasn’t told her about the incident at the wedding two weeks ago and he guesses Finan hasn’t either. Uhtred can’t be sure given that he and Finan haven’t talked about it since.

“Please,” she says scathingly, “if the man is getting up in the middle of the night to jack off to your pictures, nothing’s ‘in the past.’ Although, you have aged horribly since they were taken, so I’m sure he can’t possibly be attracted to you anymore,” she says, fiercely sarcastic as her eyes nearly roll out of her head.

Uhtred’s face reddens as a bright bloom of pleasure starts south of his stomach at the image, despite Eadith’s obvious irritation. “Okay,” he breathes, voice low and standing with his hands flat out in front of him. No one else is due into the office for another thirty minutes, but with his luck this would be the day that Osferth decides a half hour early to work is not quite enough. The young man knows most things, but Uhtred would very much rather he didn’t know these kinds of things. “Okay,” he repeats as he tries to think of what to say.

Shaking his head, Uhtred tries his best to sound normal and not like he’s choking on his own tongue when he suggests, “You don’t know that’s what he was doing, that those pictures were the ones he was looking at.”

Eadith tilts her head and purses her lips. “I do actually. Did you think I just lurked in the hallway like some creeper? Man normally sleeps like a stone that’s taken a few Valium and he was up in the middle of the night, I thought he was sick or something!” Uhtred swallows hard

“So, you talked to him?” Uhtred isn’t sure what to do with his face as his insides squirm.

Eadith nods a bit too energetically. “I did, unfortunately, and I’ll tell you, Mr. Ragnarson, I am holding you at least partially responsible for the trauma I suffered last night.”

Uhtred frowns, raising his eyebrows at her. “I’m sure it’s nothing you haven’t seen before. More than once even.”

“Very funny,” Eadith says mockingly, “But the trauma I’m referring to is a middle of the night re-hash of the bizarre combined life story starring Finan and Uhtred as, Reluctantly in Love.” Eadith flashes her palms at Uhtred in time with the last, but he can’t appreciate the showmanship as he’s both hurt and offended that Finan would portray their relationship that way. Although, the Irishman isn’t necessarily wrong.

“Is that what he said?” Uhtred is still a little stung from her comment and genuinely at a loss. 

Eadith gives an abrupt bark of laughter. “The worst!” she exclaims, surprising Uhtred. Alarmed, he watches her go to the door, pointing a finger at him all the way. “You two are the worst. You’re best friends, have a conversation, sort it out. I need peace in my house.” Opening the door, she adds more calmly, “Also, I have some contracts for you to look over this afternoon, so, keep that in mind.” She breezes out, closing the door solidly behind her without giving him a chance to respond.

Uhtred stands there stunned for a moment. Planting his hands on the desktop, he stares at the documents laid out before him and can’t read a word. It isn’t as though he disagrees with Eadith, he thinks sourly, but it hadn’t been his choice. Hell, Uhtred had told Finan that he would leave Aethelflaed, years ago before they were married, and Finan said no. Uhtred had respected his decision, as painful as it was, and he understood Finan’s point that their friendship was more important. Their romantic relationship has an undeniably spotty track record. “Fuck!” He says quietly, but forcefully as he slams a palm onto his desk.

Releasing a long, shaking breath, Uhtred runs his hands over his face. “Fuck!” He says, louder this time while shaking his head, completely rattled by the direction the morning has taken. Anger at himself and Finan wars with desire and longing in his chest. His phone rings on the desk and he isn’t going to pick up, but then he notices the number.

Stomach clenching so abruptly it makes him nauseous, Uhtred answers, “About ten minutes too late, I’d say.” He tries not to growl, but annoyance and an absurd nervousness give his voice a definite edge.

There’s a minor hesitation on the other end before Finan replies, “I get that it’s not an ideal way to start the morning.” His voice is rougher than normal through the phone, but Finan’s accent always thickens when he’s upset Uhtred’s noticed.

“She’s something that woman,” Uhtred says, flatly.

“She’s a firecracker,” Finan replies lamely. He clears his throat. “Come downstairs, we’ll get coffee.” Uhtred steps over to the window. Finan’s truck sits in the parking lot and Uhtred rests his forehead on the window. He had not woken up this morning hoping to delve deeply into his history with Finan and the chance of another rejection waiting at the end of the conversation, regardless of Finan’s late night habits, doesn’t help calm Uhtred’s stomach.

But he hears himself say, “I’ll be right down,” and his feet lead on. 

\---

Eadith glances up at the clock above her door and curses under the breath quietly, “Shit,” before getting up and walking into Osferth’s workspace, which sits between her office and Uhtred’s. It’s spacious enough for his desk, a few chairs and his ludicrous collection of indoor plants. Uhtred doesn’t seem to mind the foliage, however excessive, and it makes Osferth happy, so Eadith just lets it go.

The young man is sitting at his desk with one headphone in when she walks out and he’s typing away at something furiously. When he sees her, he perks up and moves his hand to his mouse to discretely switch windows.

“Settle, Osferth,” she says, holding out a hand. “I know all about your fanfiction.” Osferth turns pink, but she pushes past it. “Uhtred’s not back from lunch yet?” She asks, craning to investigate her boss’ office. It has been a month since their morning confrontation and even though she knows Finan and Uhtred have reached some kind of agreement, neither man has been particularly forthcoming about what their future will look like. Although both solidly denied that they are back together, Eadith has her suspicions. It doesn’t matter to her either way, really, as long as they’re happy and out of her hair with their relentless drama, but she sees signs of the love between them and can’t help but want peace for them.

Eadith’s friendships with both Finan and Uhtred are some of the most important in her life. When she moved here, Finan was the first friend she made and Uhtred hadn’t been far behind. They, along with all the rest of their makeshift family, had replaced her own nightmarish relatives and despite the shit she gives them, they make her heart whole.

That isn’t to say that there haven’t been moments where she’s wanted to knock their heads together and before Eadith fully grasped the strength of the connection between Uhtred and Finan, she had harboured a secret desire for the Irishman, but that was many, many moons ago when she was young and foolish. It was that damn face of his. Eadith has always been weak for a pretty face.

As for Uhtred, Eadith cannot imagine where her career would be under different circumstances. Uhtred had taken a chance on her and even though he’s definitely demanding, he’s a fair, decent man with a keen sense for his business. And at least she knows he isn’t lusting after her body.

While she’s lost in thought, Osferth is busy being evasive. “I, uh, I’m not sure where Uhtred went to lunch,” he stammers out, shuffling some papers on his desk and looking purposefully busy.

Eadith narrows her eyes and leans on the side of Osferth’s desk. “You don’t know where Uhtred went to lunch,” she states slowly, words saturated in disbelief.

Osferth looks at her, straight faced and shrugs, but Eadith knows his tells. Uhtred trusts her with more responsibility, but Osferth has been working under Uhtred since the young man was in high school and if anyone knows where the secrets are, it’s Osferth. Part of that is keeping Uhtred’s schedule, a job Eadith would never want, but she has to admit is extremely helpful. He’s wily, her boss, and the only plan is the one he makes up as he goes. This has worked out incredibly well for him, all things considered, but it can make him infuriatingly difficult to track down. Unless you are Osferth.

“Bullshit,” she says frankly, giving him a half smile. “Don’t play games, my little friend. I need to talk to him before two and he hasn’t been picking up his phone for hours.” Pointing into Uhtred’s office, Eadith continues, “I mean, I can see it there on his desk.” Suspicious, she asks pointedly, “Where would he go without his phone?”

Osferth continues with his best attempt at an innocent expression. “Maybe he went to lunch with Stiorra. He often leaves his phone then.” He smiles reassuringly, “I’m sure he’ll be back in time.” Osferth turns back to his computer, but Eadith can see him glancing at her from the corner of his eye as she lingers at his desk.

Breathing out slowly through her nose, annoyed, Eadith weighs the chances of being able to make Osferth give up the information. Surely there are better things she could be doing than playing twenty questions just to be told ‘maybe’ again. Or at the very least she can get a coffee to help her through the tedious process.

“Alright, fine, I’m going to get a drink, but I’ll be back,” she warns him and Osferth just gives her that pleasant smile. Turning her eyes to the ceiling, Eadith begrudgingly asks him, “Would like you something?”

“The usual, please, Eadith,” he answers, still smiling. Shaking her head, she turns on her heel and heads towards the elevator.

\---

It’s a perfect winter’s day, cold and clear, but the wind is biting and Eadith is grateful to reach the coffee shop without shivering apart. The walk didn’t seem that long, but the winters here still surprise her sometimes, weather fit only for barbarians really. She’s continuing her internal tirade against the weather gods while waiting in line when suddenly through the window she spots Finan’s truck in the alleyway across the street. At first Eadith is confused, but then she notices Finan leaning against the side of the vehicle and a man standing in front of him who is undeniably Uhtred. As she watches them together, Uhtred laughing at some animated story Finan is telling, Eadith feels a rush of affection for the two thick-headed men. 

Osferth isn’t such a great secret keeper that Eadith didn’t know Finan and Uhtred were seeing quite a lot of each other and although that wasn’t necessarily unusual, there’s been a marked upswing in both their moods, a dead giveaway on its own. Eadith’s name is called and she’s distracted for a moment collecting coffees and when she glances out the window again it looks like Finan and Uhtred are saying goodbye.

Uhtred has moved to stand beside Finan with his shoulder against the truck and he leans into Finan as the Irishman brings a hand to Uhtred’s face. Eadith turns away before their lips touch and smiling to herself she hurries through the cafe's doors back towards their office.

Osferth stares expectantly at her when she returns, but Eadith just places the coffee on his desk and turns to her door.

“Eadith,” Osferth starts and she pivots, thinking he’s going to question her sudden retreat, but he looks too nervous for that. The young man may seem skittish, but Eadith knows he would walk through fire for Uhtred and he had shown the steel in his spine to Eadith on more than one occasion when they’ve disagreed. “Did you read… ” he trails off, nodding at his computer.

Giving him an impish smile, Eadith nods. “I enjoyed it,” she admits, “but Osferth, you made _me_ blush.” Osferth’s grin is outrageously wide and they are still snickering when Uhtred comes up the hallway. He looks at them bemused and Eadith just shrugs at him, wiping at the corner of her eye as she catches her breath. “Do you have a minute?” She inquires, gesturing at Uhtred’s office.

“Yeah, of course,” he confirms, gesturing for her to go first. Uhtred says something to Osferth that Eadith doesn’t hear and then he joins her at his desk. When he takes off his coat, Eadith raises her eyebrows.

“You changed,” she observes. When he left for “lunch,” Uhtred had been wearing a navy button up, but the fitted sweater he wears now is a rich maroon.

“I did,” he acknowledges, offering no explanation until he turns from hanging up his coat in the corner and sees her coffee cup on his desk. Blinking, he looks from the steaming cup to Eadith’s face. She tries to project neutrality. “It was a gift,” Uhtred adds, knowing now that she saw them he attempts to smother a smirk.

Contemplating slamming Uhtred with a massive ‘I told you so,’ Eadith meets his eyes and settles for a sincere, “I like it. It looks good on you.” They grin foolishly at each other and Uhtred shakes his head a little before grabbing the file she’s placed on his desk. 

“Yeah, I think so too,” he replies.


	2. Complicated Creation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is anything ever easy for our favourite heroes?

I called up the moon for a little consultation  
Yes, you know that I'm a happy man  
But something in me is burning  
I gotta push it, push it out, push it, push it out  
So much frustration

You know you are as small as the things you let annoy you  
And you know you are gigantic as the things that you adore  
Some days you give thanks  
Some days you give the finger  
It's a complicated creation

Complicated Creation - Cloud Cult

“That doesn’t sound good,” Stiorra mutters under her breath as her pencil scratches softly against the paper. She and Finan are sitting at the island quietly pretending to be working on their respective tasks, but both are listening intently to the sounds coming from the other side of the house. Stiorra’s homework edges against the blueprints Finan has spread out on the gray countertop, but it may as well be written in Greek for all that she’s getting from it. Her eyes stare unfocused as she listens to her father’s deep rumble through the walls. Even through the layers of paint and drywall and wood, she can hear the anger in his voice.

Finan doesn’t respond, but she can feel the tension radiating off him as he scrubs a hand against his beard. Uhtred is on the phone with her brother and Stiorra’s stomach churns anxiously waiting for the conversation to end. Her father put it off for weeks, but he had finally decided to call his eldest and tell him about his relationship with Finan. Stiorra doesn’t think Uhtred’s reluctance was rooted in shame over his boyfriend but has a great deal more to do with his fractious relationship with his only son.

Stiorra’s eyes slide sideways as her ears remain tuned towards Uhtred’s bedroom. Finan stares down at the wide sheets of paper, but she doesn’t think the lines and measurements are making any more sense to him than her trig worksheets are to her.

Her father’s boyfriend.

She was a little surprised to find it only as strange as it had been to see her father with Aethelflaed. Stiorra has nothing, but affection for both Finan and her former stepmother, but seeing Uhtred with anyone other than her mother is still odd, even though Stiorra had only been nine when Gisela died. One of her earliest memories is of her father wrapping Stiorra and her mother in his arms and that sense of security and love had helped her immeasurably through the difficult years later.

Aethelflaed had been a friend of the family and was familiar to the children, but Finan has been around her entire life. Stiorra is sixteen now, no longer a child, and looking back on those happy years, she has to wonder about the relationship between her parents and the Irishman. Gisela’s warm affection for Finan was obvious and it soothes Stiorra to think that her mother would be pleased to know her father has found happiness with his oldest friend.

She isn’t so sure about her brother.

Uhtred’s voice stops abruptly and Finan and Stiorra wince as a door slams deep in the house. Ada raises her head from her paws where she rests at the base of Stiorra’s stool and rolls her eyes up. The young woman is resting her feet on the muscular dog and she rubs a foot reassuringly along her spine. Finan has been staying over a handful of nights a week and where Finan goes, the dogs follow. Stiorra likes their company and she wonders to herself how long it will be before they are a permanent addition to their home. She had asked her father when Finan would be moving in, but he had only mumbled evasively into his work, turning slightly pink, and she let it go for now.

Silence from down the hall and Finan and Stiorra share a concerned glance. Stiorra knows how much the distance between Uhtred and his eldest pains him and it is a wound Stiorra both understands and shares with her father. They normally only see her older brother on holidays now, or when Beocca travels into the city, which isn’t very often as he gets on in years. 

Young Uhtred had found religion as a teen, much to their father’s annoyance, and her brother has taken to it with a single-minded passion. After much persuasion from Beocca and Hild on Young Uhtred’s behalf, Uhtred had enrolled the then teen into a private religious school for his last two years with great reluctance. Finan had told her privately that he believes Uhtred’s contempt for organized religion has a lot to do with Stiorra’s grandfather. She doesn’t remember him at all, he died when she was only a baby, but even her mother, one of the most generous people Stiorra has ever known, had not liked him.

“One of us should probably go in there,” Finan suggests, his voice heavy.

“Not it,” Stiorra replies softly. It isn’t that she doesn’t want to comfort her father, but she knows he tries his best to keep her out of his battles with Young Uhtred, which she appreciates. She feels like a coward though when Finan nods understandingly and starts down the hallway. Fletcher raises his head from his spot on the couch, where he is most definitely not supposed to be, to follow Finan but the Irishman waves him back absently. 

Stiorra calls gently to the massive Ridgeback and he makes a big show of heaving himself off the couch, but he pads over and accepts her pets with his head on her knee and a placid look on his face. Running her fingers over the velvety space between Fletcher’s eyes, Stiorra sighs and presses her feet into Ada, grounding herself in the dogs’ peaceful energy.

\---

Finan walks down the hallway with a heavy heart. His feelings hadn’t been hurt by Uhtred’s reluctance to phone his son. If anything, Finan thinks he was more anxious about the call than Uhtred. The Dane had been keeping his expectations low and from what Finan gleaned while lurking in the kitchen with Stiorra, it seems like that was wise. Thinking hard on what he’ll say, Finan cannot help, but remember when Uhtred’s father had discovered the extent of his son’s relationship with Finan when they were eighteen or so. An exceptionally ugly day.

Uhtred’s father had been uncompromising and brutal under ordinary circumstances and took no issue using God to justify his cruelty and callousness. Religion had also stained Uhtred’s relationship with his mentor, Alfred. Finan remembers a handful of legendary disagreements between the two before Uhtred broke off to form his own business away from Alfred’s toxic, controlling behaviour. When Alfred had died a few years later from stomach cancer, Uhtred got so drunk at the wake, Finan had to pretty much carry him to the car.

Finan feels deeply for Uhtred’s struggle with his estranged son. The Dane was a shell of a man after Gisela died and while Finan had understood that better than anyone, Young Uhtred, being only ten, saw only a glaring hole where his mother had been and an absent father. After Uhtred eventually sorted himself out, he had worked hard with his son, along with Hild and Beocca, to repair the damage done to their bond, but Young Uhtred is as stubborn as his father. Even though Stiorra is younger she had fared better during those turbulent years and Finan imagines this is because she has her mother’s seemingly limitless compassion and her father’s fierce independence. 

Selfishly, Finan wanted the call with Uhtred and his son to go well because he’s known Young Uhtred since he was an infant and loves the boy dearly, despite the somewhat rabidly conservative values he’s adopted. Young Uhtred had accepted Aethelflaed, if not as his mother, but as a beloved member of the family and partner to his father. In his secret heart, Finan had hoped for Uhtred’s children to one day feel similarly about him. He has been around their whole lives and he knows they love and trust him, but with his transition from their father’s friend to Uhtred’s boyfriend, Finan had been nervous. He’s always been closer to Stiorra and there’s no doubt in his mind that she has accepted the switch. She had told Finan so herself, but sometimes he catches her watching them pensively.

Reaching the end of the hallway, Finan takes a deep breath and knocks lightly on the bedroom door. Uhtred answers and Finan’s heart aches at the hollowness in his eyes. Stepping into the room, Finan folds Uhtred into his arms as the Dane’s arms come around Finan’s waist and they stand there for a moment, breathing together.

“Could have gone better,” Uhtred mumbles into Finan’s neck and the Irishman tightens his hold.

“He’ll come around,” Finan whispers back and Uhtred nods against him, remaining silent. There’s no way to know if Young Uhtred will become more open minded, but Finan can’t think of anything else helpful to say. Uhtred’s father had certainly never understood and the parallels between the two situations pain Finan. Uhtred’s life has been filled with people hemming in his choices and desires and Finan knows he’s exhausted by it.

“What can I do?” Finan asks pulling away just enough to gaze into Uhtred’s face. With a sigh sounding as though it is heaved from the soles of his feet, Uhtred leans his forehead against Finan’s.

“Is Stiorra still at the out there?”

“I’m not sure,” Finan answers honestly. The girl had looked miserable, another problem Finan couldn’t solve.

“I should go talk to her,” Uhtred says, but Finan can hear the fatigue in his voice.

“Does it have to be tonight?” Resting a hand on the side of Uhtred’s face, Finan suppresses a shiver as Uhtred’s warm breath ghosts over his wrist.

“Tomorrow I’m going to pretend today didn’t happen, so tonight would be better,” Uhtred says with a miserable attempt at a smirk. Finan’s lips twitch upwards slightly.

“Alright, do you want me to come out there with you?”

Uhtred hesitates, looking into Finan’s eyes before shaking his head. Secretly relieved, Finan nods and runs a hand up and down Uhtred’s back.

“It’s getting late,” Uhtred says, releasing another sigh. “Are you staying tonight?”

Now it’s Finan’s turn to hesitate. “If you want me to,” he offers tentatively.

“Yes, of course,” Uhtred answers, running a hand through Finan’s short dark hair and this time his smile is more recognizable as his own. Finan watches him walk down the hall and feels a sharp pang in his chest. Life isn’t meant to be fair, but sometimes it’s sense of irony can be a bitch.

\---

The office is quiet when Finan exits the elevator. Eadith is leaning over Osferth’s desk, both of them consumed by whatever they’re reading on the younger man’s screen. “What are you two up to?” Finan asks as the pair cackle. Whipping around Osferth raises a hand in greeting as he minimizes the window.

Eadith smiles at Finan, “Hello stranger, so nice to see you.” Finan opens his mouth to respond, but Eadith keeps on. “I’m starting to get used to rambling around that big house all by myself, so I hope you’re not thinking about moving back in. “

Finan ducks his head sheepishly. “I haven’t moved out,” he protests weakly and Osferth and Eadith look at each other skeptically.

“No,” Eadith admits, “it’s true that all your belongings are still cluttering up my space.”

“Why haven’t you moved in properly?” Osferth questions bluntly as Finan raps his knuckles on his desk and Eadith answers before he has a chance to.

“I don’t think our brave and fearless leader has directly asked him to,” She says, lips quirked, “yet,” she allows on a gentler note. Her eyes dance at him when she adds “I would be careful if I were you, Finan, it may be a bit of a Bluebeard’s Wife situation.” Finan shakes his head, giving a wry smile.

“Very funny,” he says. Looking into Uhtred’s empty office, Finan sighs, exasperated. “Your brave and fearless leader seems to be missing.” He tries to keep the annoyance from his voice, but Finan does find Uhtred’s work schedule trying. The Irishman understands how much Uhtred’s work means to him, but his lover tends to get absolutely absorbed and forget other commitments. 

“He’ll be back any minute,” Osferth offers, checking the time. “He got stuck in traffic coming over the bridge.” Finan nods and takes a seat. It’s probably true, but Finan knows Osferth will lie through his teeth for Uhtred and the office administrator is getting much better at it.

“In all seriousness,” Eadith begins, but Finan raises a hand to cut her off.

“If he wants me there, he’ll ask,” Finan says firmly, trying not to reveal his own uncertainty.

Eadith exchanges a furtive glance with Osferth and Finan narrows his eyes. Given the endless hours the three spend together, Finan is confident that these two know Uhtred best, aside from himself and Stiorra.

“Maybe,” Eadith starts, slowly coming around the desk to sit with Finan, “he’s concerned that you don’t want to live together long term and that’s why you’ve kept your place." Osferth clears his throat loudly, widening his eyes significantly at Eadith. She makes a face back at him and the annoyance Finan tried to push down rises sharply. “That you’re hedging your bets,” Eadith adds evenly looking at Finan, ignoring Osferth’s twitching.

Finan shifts his eyes back and forth between them. “Sweet Jesus, is this what you two do here all day? Gossip about Uhtred’s love life?” Osferth has the decency to look sheepish, but Eadith just shrugs, unashamed.

“Sometimes. When we think he’s being ridiculous.” She stares at Finan frankly. “Which, granted, is most of the time.”

Finan looks out the window knowing that his irritation has as much to do with his own anxieties as the idea that Eadith and Osferth know more about his relationship than he does. Eadith looks as though she’s going to add something else, when the elevator dings on their floor. Leaning forward, Finan widens his eyes threateningly at her and she sticks out her tongue in response.

Uhtred is fixated on his phone, typing furiously, and the puzzlement on his face when he sees Finan lets the Irishman know his boyfriend has forgotten their lunch plans. To Uhtred’s credit, he rallies well and smiles warmly at Finan, ushering him into his office. Finan’s almost through the door when he hears Osferth whisper defensively to Uhtred, “I messaged you,” and Finan could swear he hears Uhtred shush him in return. Despite his annoyance, Finan has to smile, just a little. Walking over to the windows, Finan watches the rain fall as Uhtred drops his belongings on the desk.

The Dane comes up beside Finan, wrapping an arm around his waist. “I’m sorry I’m late,” Uhtred says plainly, tightening his grip on Finan’s hip. “I know I’ve been late a lot recently.”

Finan turns to him and the genuine remorse he sees in Uhtred’s face both agitates and mollifies him. He appreciates the sincere apology, but it makes it that much harder to hold onto his irritation. The Dane is particularly skilled at this and Finan often finds himself planning to admonish Uhtred and ending up doing the opposite.

Raising an eyebrow, Finan settles for pointing out that Uhtred has at least two clocks on his body between his watch and his phone and would appreciate it if he used either. Uhtred smiles affectionately, knowing he’s escaped the noose once more, and pulls Finan in to brush their lips together.

The soft contact makes Finan want to push for more and he’s tempted to lure Uhtred back home, but even as he’s thinking it, Finan is reminded of his conversation with the two hens in the other room. Uhtred’s house has been home for months. Hell, Finan drives Stiorra to school more often than Uhtred now, his work is closer and he’s there nearly every night. The dogs mope when he takes them back to the place he shares with Eadith because they’ve gotten spoiled sleeping on the teenager’s bed.

Uhtred looks at him searchingly. “Are you in there, Finan?”

The Irishman shakes his head, leaning in to kiss Uhtred, once more. “Yes, sorry. Lost in space.”

“I asked if you’re working this afternoon.”

“No, they’re not ready for us to pour the concrete yet, it’ll be at least a day delay.”

Nodding, Uhtred suggests casually, “Maybe we should go to Eadith’s this afternoon, finally finish packing your stuff.”

Finan lifts an eyebrow. “Been talking to those lunatics out there, have you?”

Reddening slightly, Uhtred shrugs and replies self-consciously, “Eadith has been suggesting that she could use the space.”

“Huh,” Finan says, feigning disinterest, leaning back, “Eadith said that?”

Uhtred glances out the window, a smile tugging at his lips. “Well, she mentioned it after I asked if she would be able to manage the place on her own.” Turning back to Finan, Uhtred looks at him seriously and continues. “If you want to actually move in with us, that is, I know you like your place-“

Finan is already shaking his head, hoping the vultures outside aren’t pressing their ears to the door, but not putting it past them. “No, that sounds good,” he says contently, pulling Uhtred in.

\---

“Uhtred, please keep my son in one piece!” Sihtric’s wife calls across the yard, laughing at Uhtred’s antics with her older child in the pool. Ealhswith sits in the shade nursing their youngest and Stiorra and Eadith share the blanket with her. “I didn’t know that Uhtred had another ex-wife,” she says conspiratorially to the other two women. They’re celebrating Stiorra’s nineteenth birthday and the day is bright and warm.

“Dad doesn’t like to talk about his first wife.” Stiorra confirms, a smirk tugging at her lips.

Uhtred and Young Sihtric have drifted into the shallow end and Uhtred frowns at the women. “Stiorra,” he warns. Completely ignoring her father, Stiorra leans in.

“It didn’t go very well, they were super young and he was drinking _a lot_ back then.” Eadith and Ealhswith look intrigued and Stiorra nods briskly.

“Stiorra!” Uhtred repeats exasperatedly.

She whips around, long brown hair flaring about her shoulders. “Dad! Please! We are having a private conversation.”

“How did I not know about this? What happened in the end?” Ealhswith raises her eyebrows at Uhtred across the patio as she questions Stiorra. Uhtred lifts himself out of the pool and comes towards them. 

Glancing back at him, Stiorra’s smile is bittersweet as she says, “He met Mom.”

“She’s right,” Uhtred concedes with a half-hearted shrug as he gazes down at Stiorra affectionately. He shakes the water from his hair over her and Stiorra slaps at his legs. He grins shamelessly. “I was god struck. Nothing else to be done.”

Eadith laughs, “I suppose not, I’ve never known you to change your mind once it’s set.”

“And I wouldn’t hold your breath for that to start happening,” Finan pipes up as he crosses the grass towards them.

Stiorra calls out to Finan as Uhtred helps Young Sihtric out of the water. “Dinner ready?”

“You bet, wee one,” he gestures extravagantly through the patio doors. “After you, ladies.” Eadith helps Ealhswith up and Stiorra ushers Young Sihtric towards the house. The older women start talking about something they watched on the weekend, but Stiorra is only listening with one ear. She glances back through the patio doors and watches Finan tease her father. As she sees Uhtred’s eyes, full of love, shine back at a laughing Finan, she thinks of the bitter irony that the one person who could always speak sense into her brother was Gisela. But her mother is gone and Stiorra will just have to do.

–

“I can’t believe you got him to agree to this,” Uhtred mutters again as Stiorra helps him set the table.

“It’s going to be fine,” Reassuring herself as much as him. Stiorra can tell he’s a nervous wreck, growling like a bear at the slightest. Finan had been smoking discretely when she arrived. Hidden against the side of the house he had raised a hand weakly when she waved before heading through the front door. It wasn’t clear to her if the smoking was due to her brother, or her father, but she allows him his moment of peace.

Finan has his brave face on now though and he works steadily in the kitchen, occasionally singing along to the radio under his breath. He loves to have music playing, one of the many things Stiorra has learned about the man she’s known her entire life since he moved into their home. It’s feels normal and right now for her to turn the street corner and see Finan’s truck in the driveway and hear Ada and Fletcher barking excitedly as she turns her key. The dogs are outside for the evening, lounging on the lawn. Stiorra knows Uhtred’s fonder of his furred roommates than he lets on, but tonight things need to go smoothly. 

Uhtred is still grumbling when the doorbell rings. He looks up from the tabletop apprehensively and meets Stiorra’s eyes. Placing her hands over his, Stiorra firmly repeats, “It’s going to be fine.”

If only she had known how wrong she was.

Hild volunteered to accompany Young Uhtred on the trip north and Stiorra had been so glad to hear her mother’s oldest friend would be there to help smooth the waters, but they don’t even make it to dinner.

Young Uhtred hasn’t seen their father’s new home, even though Uhtred has been here for years, so Stiorra proposes a tour of the house to help break the tension and give them something benign to talk about. They start in the kitchen, obviously, so it is only natural that they end on the far side of the house in the master bedroom.

Looking back, Stiorra can’t help, but feel partially responsible, but she reminds herself that she had never thought Young Uhtred was capable of being as hateful as he was when the three of them stood in her father’s bedroom. One minute, Stiorra is making inane comments about the colour of the walls to quell the anxious flutters in her stomach and the next, the floor drops out beneath her.

“He lives here?” Young Uhtred asks abruptly. He had refused to use Finan’s name from the moment he and Hild entered the house which has clearly set Uhtred on edge. Hild had been the one to recommend Finan attend to remind her brother of the actual physical man who had been there for them throughout their childhood, the man who had mourned their mother with them and who had tried to keep Uhtred from completely falling apart, as well as anyone could have anyway. Finan had winced when Stiorra told him this.

‘Looks like the good Abbess still hasn’t forgiven me,’ Finan had muttered darkly to her father as they sat by the pool discussing the dinner. Uhtred had just snorted loudly and shook his head. Stiorra hadn’t bothered to ask what Finan did to earn Hild’s ire, they never told her those kinds of stories, but her curiosity had made a brief reappearance when Finan and Hild had greeted each other warmly and whatever the Irishman whispered in Hild’s ear made the reserved older woman chuckle.

“He does, you knew that,” Uhtred answers his son, voice level, but Stiorra can tell they are entering dangerous territory. Young Uhtred had been more relaxed when Stiorra visited with him one on one and despite her desire to be understanding, she resents that he couldn’t bring that openness to their father’s home.

“Seems serious.” The comment is innocent enough, but Stiorra sees the muscles in Uhtred’s jaw clench. Her brother stands across the modestly sized room with his back to the windows, hand clasped behind him.

Uhtred doesn’t reply, simply stares at his son, face tight. Regret starts to worm its way into Stiorra’s gut and then Young Uhtred strikes his blow.

“I suppose,” he starts, as though he’s about to talk about the weather, “that it’s a good thing Mom is with God now, at least she doesn’t have to be shackled to a deviant anymore.”

Stiorra stops breathing for a moment. His voice shook at the end, but Young Uhtred looks viciously satisfied at having delivered his poison and Stiorra turns to her father and her heart breaks at the whiteness of his face, the absolute devastation she glimpses before rage takes over and he lunges at his son. Stiorra screams out for Hild while doing her best to get between the two men, but it only took Uhtred a second grab Young Uhtred’s collar with both hands and haul the leaner man upwards.

Finan and Hild rush into the bedroom immediately, but Young Uhtred manages to deliver one last dagger before Finan can haul Uhtred backwards. Whatever her brother said was for Uhtred’s ears only and Stiorra watches as her father crumples. Uhtred releases Young Uhtred’s shirt and Finan pulls him backwards as Hild yanks her brother from the room. Stiorra follows and cries at Hild to get him out of the house.

Stiorra glances back at the bedroom, but the look on Finan’s face stops her cold. She can’t see her father. Swallowing the sudden urge to sob, Stiorra rushes out the door and watches as Hild practically forces her brother into the car. The abbess comes back towards the house with her arms outstretched, but Stiorra cannot take her eyes from her brother’s stare. There was so much pain when their mother died, so much that it almost drowned all of them and Stiorra can still see it there on his face. She backs away from Hild and turns into the house, weeping. For whom, she doesn’t know.

\---

“It’s been almost two months. Has he said anything to you about it?” Stiorra and the dogs stalk Finan through the house. The Irishman is trying to pack for the weekend and he’s mostly forgetting what he came into a room for and tripping over his three shadows. It’s an important weekend and it is getting off to an extremely mediocre start.

Willing himself to be patient, Finan shakes his head as he goes back to the laundry room for the third time. “No, nothing still.”

Stiorra huffs. “Well, have you asked him?” Finan stops to give her a stern look and she raises her hands. “Yes, okay, stupid question.” She’s silent for a moment as she watches him dig through the dirty laundry hamper. Ada and Fletcher can’t quite get past her into the narrow room, but Finan can feel all three pairs of eyes on him like lasers. “What are you looking for?” Stiorra eventually asks like she’s the one who’s exasperated.

“A shirt,” Finan says shortly. Talking about the ill-fated dinner with Young Uhtred causes his blood pressure to rise and he’s already dangerously tense. They waited years for a face to face meeting and now things were worse than ever. Willing himself to relax, Finan takes hold of the sides of the tall plastic hamper and looks at Stiorra dead on. “I would tell you, alright, I promise.” He stares into her eyes and wills Stiorra to believe him because it’s true. Aside from Finan himself, the Irishman is confident that Stiorra is the person who loves Uhtred best.

Stiorra suddenly looks much younger as she says quietly, “He’s been drinking more than he used to.”

Finan straightens now and puts his hands on Stiorra’s shoulders. “Yes,” he concedes, “that is true, but it won’t last forever. Your father is a great man,” Finan continues earnestly, “and part of that, an important part, is that he cares so deeply. This isn’t something that will go away, Stiorra. I’m sorry, wee one, but this will be with us for a while.” Finan brings her into his arms and speaks into her hair. “Don’t worry about the drinking, he’ll give that up soon, he always does.” He lets her go and sees his own anguished helplessness mirrored in Stiorra eyes. “He just doesn’t know what else to do right now.”

He tries to smile in what he hopes is an encouraging manner, and Finan desperately projects confidence to Stiorra. It seems to work and she whispers a small thanks and offers a genuine smile back. Breathing deeply, Finan turns back to the laundry when she asks abruptly, “Are you going to propose to Dad this weekend?” Finan freezes halfway to the basket.

When he turns back to her, she’s staring at him frankly, the hint of a grin lingering around her mouth.

“What makes you ask that?” Finan questions making innocent eyes.

“Eadith definitely gave you away,” Stiorra’s really grinning now. Finan lets out a bark of laughter, shaking his head.

“I knew that woman wasn’t to be trusted. Christ,” he says, looking pained, “you obviously haven’t told him, have you?”

Stiorra huffs, looking offended, “Of course not!” She flares her eyes at him. “I think it’s exciting.”

Finan has to grin back, a warm feeling enveloping his chest, temporarily masking the screaming panic. “Thank you,” he says roughly, clearing his throat as she continues to grin at him. Stiorra is about to say something else when Finan’s phone starts to ring.

-

Staring blearily at the TV, Finan groans as he sits up. Stiorra is asleep across the couch cushions with her feet buried under Finan’s thigh. She stirs slightly in her sleep and Finan pulls the blanket off the back of the couch to cover her legs and gets up slowly, trying not jostle her. Turning off the TV, Finan gathers the pizza boxes and shuffles to place them on the island, still half asleep.

Osferth had called when Finan and Stiorra were having their little heart to heart and let him know that Uhtred and Eadith were stuck for the rest of the evening in negotiations that would likely continue tomorrow as well. Stiorra had volunteered to stay for dinner seeing Finan’s disappointment and they had fallen asleep after too much salt and bad TV. The dogs are asleep on the living room carpet as well and Finan summons them with a low whistle to let them out. Ada gets up right away, padding over to Finan wagging her tail sedately, while Fletcher barely opens an eye. Giving Ada a good scratch behind her ear, Finan walks over to Fletcher and prods the lazy boy gently with his foot.

“Come on, you great big lump,” he whispers affectionately as Ada circles them. Finan imagines he can hear the older dog sigh before slowly getting to his feet. Fletcher is by no means old, but he’s always been a great lover of sleep. “Come on,” Finan encourages patting the stocky dog’s hip, “outside.” Ada starts to vibrate even more and Fletcher seems to accepts it won’t be a total waste of his time and they follow Finan to the patio door.

As he stands in the doorway yawning and waiting for the dogs to come back in, Finan realizes he can hear the shower running in their bathroom. When he looks over at the front door, he sees Uhtred’s keys hanging from their customary hook. With both dogs settled for the night, Finan checks on Stiorra once more before heading down the hall to the bedroom he shares with Uhtred.

The bathroom door is ajar and Finan knocks softly to announce himself. Uhtred opens the glass door and immediately looks contrite. “I’m so sorry,-“ he starts, but Finan waves him off.

“It’s fine,” Finan says sincerely, just glad to see Uhtred home and relieved he didn’t fall asleep at the office which he’s been known to do. “Any room in there for me?” He asks curiously, stepping closer to the shower. Uhtred grins and steps back from the steamy entrance. Finan pulls his shirt off and leaves his jeans on the floor. “Jesus, man, are you trying to boil yourself?” Exclaiming, Finan reaches for the tap, but Uhtred traps him in his arms before he can adjust it.

“Give it a minute,” Uhtred urges in a low voice, his insistent mouth parting Finan’s lips. The Irishman stops worrying about the heat from the water and presses himself into Uhtred’s slick body. The shower is narrow, but they manage in the cramped space as they have dozens of times before. Running his hands down Uhtred’s back, Finan cups the flesh of Uhtred ass firmly, slipping a finger between and moaning as Uhtred grinds their bodies closer together. Pushing back, Finan reluctantly breaks their kiss and guides Uhtred with eager hands to face the shower wall.

Uhtred leaves his palms against the tile slightly out from his body where Finan places them. Molding himself against Uhtred’s back, Finan nips and sucks his way across Uhtred’s shoulders.

“Hickeys are for teenagers.” Uhtred attempts to scold Finan, but it comes out breathless and less intimidating than he probably hoped. Finan just smiles into the dip between Uhtred’s shoulder blades. A place Finan knows better than perhaps any other. The scars across the Dane’s back from a motorcycle accident when they were young men still stand out in whitened ridges, but now they are just a part of Uhtred’s body, as though they’ve always been there.

For a while the only sounds are the running water and Finan’s tender, but filthy, murmurs into the Dane’s ear as the Irishman uses one finger and then two to open Uhtred. Both men are shaking and as Finan presses into Uhtred, their sighs rise and fall together. Finan grabs one of Uhtred’s hands in his and the coolness of the tile against his knuckles helps ground him.

Uhtred breaks the silence, surprising Finan when he gasps out, “I still remember the first time.” Finan licks the warm water from the back of Uhtred’s neck.

“I would hope so,” he grunts, resting his forehead against Uhtred’s shoulder. The memory couldn’t be pried from Finan’s mind with all the dynamite in the world and just the thought of it has him tensing, slowing down. In the back of that old truck, Uhtred’s eyes had been almost black in the moonlight, staring through him, whispering ardently how much he wanted Finan over and over. Groaning, Finan uses his free hand to stroke Uhtred in time with his thrusts.

“It was the first time you said you loved me,” Uhtred says, eyes burning brightly as he turns his face and Finan raises his head to press their lips together.

“That’s how badly I wanted you,” Finan teases, voice stumbling as he breathes through the overwhelming sensations of Uhtred’s body. Uhtred chuckles huskily and Finan’s hips snap harder in response leaving both men panting. “Uhtred,” Finan moans as they come together, and he tightens his grip on the Dane’s hand to the point of bruising.

Once they’ve separated, Uhtred slides soap across Finan’s chest, looking thoughtful. “What?” Finan asks, rinsing shampoo from his hair.

Uhtred looks at him and asks lightly, “Will you marry me?”

Finan blinks, wiping drips of shampoo from his forehead. “What did Eadith tell you?” He demands suspiciously. Uhtred frowns.

“Nothing,” he answers, bewildered before raising his eyebrows at Finan, understanding suddenly striking him. “That’s why you wanted to go away.” The surprise is clear in Uhtred’s voice and it’s Finan’s turn to frown. Rinsing the remaining soap from his hair, Finan ducks his head, meeting Uhtred’s eyes with some difficulty.

“Yes, for God’s sake, that uh-“ he clears his throat, “that was the plan.”

Uhtred beams at him. “Alright,” He says simply, wrapping his arms around Finan once again.

“Alright,” Finan repeats, unable to stop his grin, heart full.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I'm sorry to the Young Uhtred fans out there, truly, but it had to be someone.
> 
> Apologies for any errors.


	3. But I'm Yours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Good things come to those who wait.

Throughout all the seasons, in this transition of winter-spring  
You've been here beside me with the sweet nothings you're whispering  
You're a lovable, angelic piece of perfect  
And anything I do for you is worth it  
Times a million and a half, we can sit and be resilient and laugh  
In between the subtle compliments and billions of half-  
Kiss/half-hug/half-cuddle moments we share  
I know it's unfair that we could only spend a few days here  
But I’m yours, and I think that it's clear  
So forget about goodbye, this is "see you soon, my dear"

'Cause I love you and I'd like to spend forever  
In the subtle warmth inside your arms, like fireplaces' embers  
I will try my best to keep you by my side until the weather  
Turns apocalyptic, and we end up drifting to the nether  
But we'd still be wearing sweaters when we got there  
'Cause we're both too caught up in cuteness to care 'bout hot air

Valentine - Atlas

“Stop fiddling with it,” Stiorra says, exasperated as she slaps lightly at Uhtred’s hands where they hover around the knot of his tie. Uhtred does as she asks, smiling fondly down at his daughter, but nerves have him struggling to decide where to put his hands. He’s decided on pockets, to restrain them at least, but Stiorra tuts at that as well. “Dad, please,” she says while grabbing his wrists gently. “Just stand like a normal person with your arms straight, for one more moment.” Uhtred takes a deep breath and relaxes his shoulders while lifting his eyebrows at her. Smiling back, Stiorra says brightly, “Much better, thank you.”

Uhtred focuses on watching Stiorra in the mirror in front of them as her hands work at the tiny imperfections she sees in his suit. “It’s perfect, Stiorra. I mean it,” he has said this a dozen times at least since he arrived over an hour ago. The final fitting is just one of the hundred other tasks he’s been assigned for the day.

Stiorra gives a sigh and steps back with her critical eye continuing to roam. Finally, she glances up at his face, eyebrows raised and all Uhtred can see is Gisela. He tries not to project Stiorra’s mother over top of her very often, but the resemblance can be striking. “You’d think this was your first time at the altar,” she teases with a mischievous smile. “Instead of your… fourth?” She winkles her nose. “I’m not counting that blond bitch.”

“We were never even close to married,” Uhtred replies, rolling his eyes.

“Thank the gods,” Stiorra mutters as she leans forward to brush off a piece of imaginary lint. 

Steeling himself and trying for neutral, Uhtred asks, “Will your brother be there?”

Stiorra doesn’t look up at first, but he can see displeasure tighten her face momentarily. She fusses quietly for a breath before gazing up at him, face open and loving. “I don’t know,” she says honestly, “but he is coming around. I think he just needs more time.” Uhtred sighs and places a hand over top of hers on his shoulder.

“Alright,” he says quietly. Clearing his throat he straightens and runs his hands down the front of the suit. “So, is it acceptable?”

Stiorra nods and grins. “I think Finan will approve.” Her grin turns sly and Uhtred’s brow contracts.

“What?” Uhtred asks warily and Stiorra suddenly busies herself tidying her worktable.

“Oh, nothing,” Stiorra says, still smiling broadly with her head bowed, “I just, heard a little rumour about you and Finan.”

Uhtred looks alarmed, “What kind of rumour?” All of the less than delicate things he and Finan have done in quasi-public places flash through his mind.

Stiorra looks up, eyes gleaming with humour, and says, “My roommate, Gwen, her boyfriend loves these god awful dance clubs and-“ Uhtred knows what she’s going to say next and he feels a massive wave of relief, it could be much worse. “they saw you two there. Dancing. Together. Word on the street is that Finan’s shirt could not have been tighter.” Stiorra’s eyebrows get even higher and she’s a breath away from laughter. Uhtred shakes his head amused at her delight and shrugs.

“Finan likes to dance,” he says, grinning unashamedly. Stiorra’s grin softens and she steps over to give Uhtred a spontaneous hug.

Drawing back, she says, “I think it’s nice. Hilarious, and nice.”

—

Laying the black suit bag flat in his backseat, Uhtred straightens and puts his sunglasses on against the glare of the day. The September weather has been unseasonably beautiful and Uhtred says a small prayer that it will last three more days. The manor has provisions in case of rain, so Uhtred isn’t overly concerned, but he knows Finan has his heart set on the outside ceremony. Even though the man had spent his adult life avoiding marriage, Finan certainly has a lot of incredibly specific ideas about what a wedding should be. Smiling fondly at the thought of his soon-to-be husband, Uhtred shakes his head as he slides into the driver’s seat and checks his phone for any sign of emergencies in the last hour.

There are the usual messages from work and Uhtred swipes them away unopened for now. He had promised Finan he would take a two week break over the festivities and an unusually tense conversation with Finan had clarified that ‘not working’ meant no phone calls, messages, or emails of any kind. Uhtred is the first to admit he spends too much at the office, but he had worked so hard for so long to establish his company. He had made sacrifices he wouldn’t care to make again in any other life, so it is almost physically painful for him to leave it in the hands of anyone else. Not to say that he doesn’t trust Eadith to keep everything in line in his absence, but still.

For all his bluster, Finan is a thoughtful and dedicated partner and when he stands his ground on an issue, Uhtred reminds himself to be careful. The Irishman had been more than patient with Uhtred over the years, near saint-like, and it would destroy Uhtred if that were to start cracking now that their lives have finally come together again. The last five years have been the happiest since his marriage to Gisela and he intends on doing everything he can to make sure things stay that way.

Well, the happiest with one exception. Uhtred opens his contacts and his thumb hovers over Young Uhtred’s number. Clenching his jaw, Uhtred stares down at the ten digits and feels the familiar mix of shame and anger roil in his gut. There’s no guarantee Young Uhtred would answer even if Uhtred did call. Uhtred’s son has changed his number without telling his father before and pride stopped Uhtred from asking Stiorra. It wasn’t fair to put her in the middle anyway, but Uhtred isn’t sure what to do anymore. Finan has been around all their lives and Uhtred knows his son had genuine fondness for the Irishman, at least at one point, which is the most frustrating part.

Knowing it is a sensitive topic, Finan doesn’t mention Young Uhtred to his partner, but through the usual gossipy back channels of their shared circle of friends, Uhtred knows Finan feels responsible for the fracture in Uhtred and his eldest son’s relationship. There would be time to deal with that later though. Uhtred knows it isn’t something that will be solved overnight. Hell, it had taken years just to get Young Uhtred back over to the house and even then dinner had ended poorly, in a word. Dropping his phone onto the passenger seat, Uhtred focuses instead on easing into traffic and tries to cool his temper before he meets Finan at the florist.

Thankfully the traffic is distracting enough and Uhtred is annoyed for a completely different reason by the time he crosses town. He’s relieved to find a parking space not far from the florist and he waits for Finan’s truck to appear. The day is absolutely scorching and as he waits, Uhtred unbuttons his cuffs and rolls his sleeves up. Summer always makes him think of Finan. No matter the state of their relationship over the years, romantic, or not, Uhtred cannot go more than one bright, cloudless day without thinking of the months after they graduated from high school.

Friends for years already by that point, Uhtred and Finan had begun tentatively testing each other’s boundaries that last year and by summer they were thoroughly entangled and together near constantly. Their paths diverged for a few years in the fall, but it didn’t last long. They are bound, as Finan likes to say.

Only ten minutes late, Finan appears around the corner. Winking at Uhtred as he drives past, Finan parks his truck on the street and steps onto the sidewalk. Uhtred admires the strip of Finan’s exposed stomach as he stretches his arms over his head. Finan notices him staring and shows off a little. Chuckling at his lover’s antics, Uhtred grabs his keys and steps out to properly greet the dark-haired scoundrel.

–

“How did the florist go?” Eadith asks as she unloads the box of programs onto the kitchen island with a _thump._ Her travel mug balances precariously on top of the cardboard, but she snatches the maroon cylinder before it falls.

“Weren’t you drinking that when I saw you this morning?” Finan asks, dodging her question as he pulls the box towards him and opens it.

Eadith shrugs and smiles in a deceptively sweet way as she answers, “Well, someone, who shall remain nameless, convinced my workaholic boss to take an _extended_ vacation, so I am up to my tits in the ten thousand things that madman normally does in a day. So yes, I’m having an extra cup of coffee, or four.” 

“Poor thing,” Finan expresses sympathetically and Eadith swats him on the arm as she walks past into the living room.

Dropping herself on the couch, Eadith looks back at him and notices him staring intently into the case of ivory white programs. “Do they look the way you hoped?” She asks, noticing his furrowed brow.

Finan doesn’t answer right away as he uses the tip of one finger to trace over Uhtred’s name written in elegant black cursive. “Is this just fucking crazy?” He asks Eadith, looking a little surprised, as though he hadn’t meant to say the words out loud.

Eadith gets up from the couch immediately, hands on her hips and eyes wide. “Finan, I have spent a calculable amount of my life organizing this wedding _and_ carrying Uhtred’s workload, so you best get that look off your face.”

Finan smiles sheepishly, “I’m not planning on skipping out, if that’s what you mean. I just,” Sighing he runs a hand over his hair, newly trimmed in time for the wedding. Eadith prefers his hair and beard longer he knows, but it had been a long time since her tastes dictated his appearance. “Christ,” he says heartily, closing the box in front of him and drumming his hands on the counter restlessly.

Eadith narrows her eyes. “What happened at the florist?” She asks again.

Finan raises his hands, looking exasperated. “Nothing happened, Uhtred liked what I picked, he brought the cheque, it was fine. We had lunch after, made out in the car, the usual.” Shrugging, Finan looks at her helplessly. “It was good, I had a nice time.” When Finan had first opened his mouth, Eadith looked sympathetic, but now she’s rolling her eyes at him.

“Poor Finan with his handsome, attentive husband. ’You had a nice time?’ Give me a moment to weep for you,” she huffs, joining him at the counter. Grabbing his face between her hands, Eadith looks at him seriously as she says, “Sihtric is going to be here any minute and the two of you are going for a beer, or twelve,” she says with a half smile, “and then you will come home, fuck your fiancé, go to bed, wake at a decent hour and drive to the venue. That is what you need to do, Finan.”

Despite the nervousness flooding his chest, Finan finds himself holding in a grin and feeling a warm rush of affection for Eadith. They had been friends, and occasionally more, for years and she has never failed to steer him in the right direction. Their connection had been instantaneous and he thinks perhaps it had to do with their separate, but equally dysfunctional childhoods. They had both learned about trust and family the hard way and while Uhtred had difficulties with his father, Ragnar Senior’s adoption had slowly eased much of the early trauma his fiancé had experienced. Eadith and Finan hadn’t been so lucky.

“Right,” he says giving her a wide smile finally and with one last annoyed quirk of her eyebrow, Eadith releases him and grabs her purse from the counter.

“And remember,” she says lightly as she passes him, “lunch for the bridal party is at noon tomorrow, so don’t be late! One quickie and straight to bed.”

Finan grins without turning around and responds with “No promises!” over his shoulder and Eadith cackles loudly on her way out the door.

–

When Sihtric shows up, Finan hasn’t quite recovered from his attack of nerves. His conversation with Eadith that had managed to be both reassuring and scolding had mostly helped, but here he is now sitting on the patio smoking a cigarette. As usual, Sihtric lets himself in and Finan isn’t even aware of the other man’s presence until Sihtric proclaims, “Wow, so the secret cigarettes have made an appearance.”

Lost in thought, Finan startles in his seat, “Sweet Jesus, Sihtric!” he exclaims, nearly dropping said cigarette in the process. The younger man shakes his head as he slouches into the chair beside Finan around the rectangular glass table.

“Ealhswith picked them up again about this time before our wedding too,” Sihtric says matter-of-factly, eyeing the smoke that floats between them distastefully as he crosses his long, lean legs at the ankle.

To distract from having been caught out, Finan gestures at Sihtric’s legs and asks, “Why the skinny jeans, Sihtric, I mean, honestly. I can nearly see the wrinkles in your cock.”

Sihtric just grins and lounges comfortably in his seat. “I like it when people look at me,” he raises his eyebrows suggestively as he adds, “Ealhswith likes it too.”

Finan shakes his head, laughing and Sihtric joins him. “God, you two,” Finan says fondly, “you’re absolutely insane.”

Sihtric shrugs as he continues to chuckle. “We are happy, like you and Uhtred.” He looks as though he’s going to say something else but thinks better of it.

Finan’s eyes narrow slightly. “What?” He asks. Sitting up and butting out his smoke into the ashtray at his foot, Finan tilts his head, still looking at Sihtric. “What?”

Sihtric gives his one-sided smile and claps a hand on Finan’s knee. “It’s nothing, I’m just…” he waves his free hand at the air vaguely, “relieved, I guess, that this day is here.”

This explanation only deepens Finan’s frown and he’s confused as he asks, “Just what the hell are you talking about?”

Sihtric sits back and shrugs again, smiling softly. “I don’t know, I guess I’ve been getting a bit soft since Young Sihtric was born, but I always thought this was going to happen. Hoped it would anyway, considering the embarrassing way you two moon over each other. Granted,” Sihtric says chuckling dryly, “I thought it would have happened years ago, but fate is an odd thing.”

Finan turns his lips up in an approximation of a smile, but his eyes are distant as he thinks back on the dismal year after Gisela’s tragic death and his falling out with Uhtred. They had lost so many years out of sheer stubbornness and grief. 

“Hey,” Sihtric says firmly, leaning towards Finan again, “none of that shit matters anymore. I shouldn’t have said anything.” Meeting Finan’s eyes solidly, Sihtric stresses his next words, “It wasn’t right before, but it is right _now_ , and that’s what matters.”

Finan smiles at the earnest expression on his friend’s face and teases, “You’ve always been our biggest fan.”

This makes Sihtric laugh and he nods. “Yeah, I suppose so.” Planting his hands on his bent knees, Sihtric prepares to stand as he cringes a little. “But I think I could have lived with seeing a little less of the reality when we were teenagers.”

Giving a loud bark of laughter, Finan bounces to his feet and slaps Sihtric on his shoulder. Grinning at the memories of summers with Uhtred as teens, Finan waves Sihtric through the patio door and, following after him, says whimsically, “Ah, to be young and disgustingly in love.”

\--

Uhtred turns the keys towards him as his tires roll to a stop in the driveway of the home he shares with Finan. His fiancé is out with Sihtric and they had invited Uhtred to join them, but he had begged exhaustion and came home. It sounded as those the two old friends were having a _very_ good time and Uhtred doesn’t think he can catch up with them and still be able to drive for hours in the morning.

Letting his head fall back against the headrest, Uhtred listens to the slight ticks of the engine. It’s after ten already and the night is cool enough that he debates rolling up the window, but he knows if he gets too comfortable, he will fall asleep right here. Instead, he lets the breeze play across his forearms where he’s rolled up the sleeves of the soft blue shirt Finan had laid on the bed that morning. Eyes still closed, Uhtred smiles as he thinks of Finan’s small habits, the ones that had surprised Uhtred when they first started living together.

Finan is steady and there are no games with him. He’s got an unbelievably loud mouth, but he’s always been a hard man for people to dislike. There is steel in Finan though, that is obvious from the first meeting and it gives Uhtred endless enjoyment to see the Irishman’s gentler side in their relationship. The first time Finan laid out clothes for Uhtred and the Dane had asked him about it, the other man had only shrugged, turned slightly pink and said, ‘I like it on you.’

Uhtred is reminiscing pleasantly when he hears footsteps coming up the walk. He opens his eyes to see Osferth hurrying up the driveway with a folder in his hands. Although Uhtred had extreme reservations about hiring the young man as his executive assistant all those years ago, Gisela had vouched for him, and she had not been wrong. The boy can keep a secret.

“Sir?” Osferth asks softly as he comes up to Uhtred’s window. Directing Osferth around to the passenger side, Uhtred sits up and turns on the interior dome light. Closing the door behind him, Osferth settles into the seat and passes Uhtred the folder. Running his eyes over the updated documents, Uhtred initially ignores the anxious tapping of Osferth’s fingers on his knees.

“Something wrong, Osferth?” Uhtred drawls, flipping through the pages.

“Well, it’s just,” Osferth clears his throat, “you’re sure Finan’s not home?”

Rolling his eyes, Uhtred asks sarcastically, “Are you that afraid of him, boy?”

“You are, sir,” Osferth says seriously and Uhtred glares at him from the corner of his eye. Looking out the passenger window in guise of watching the street, but no doubt to hide a smile, Osferth manages to stop the nervous drumming. They sit in comfortable silence for a moment as Uhtred finishes skimming the pages. He has faith that Osferth has done his due diligence and Uhtred takes the pen Osferth offers to sign the last two pages.

Handing the folder back to Osferth, Uhtred asks him, “Do you still want a ride tomorrow?”

Osferth shakes his head. “That’s alright, sir but thank you. Eadith and I have a few things to finish up in the morning, so we’ll just drive up together.”

Nodding, Uhtred thanks Osferth for meeting him at the house and they get out of the car together. Uhtred gives a quick wave to Osferth as the young man drives off. Two signatures can hardly be considered breaking his agreement to Finan, but Uhtred feels sheepish as he walks through their front door, as though he expects Finan to jump out from behind a door and yell, ‘Fucking gotcha!”

There are no leaping Finans to be seen however, and Uhtred doesn’t bother to turn on any lights as he walks through the house. When he enters the kitchen, the soft glow from the patio lights casts shadows across the room and Uhtred places the results of his endless errands on the countertop. Fully feeling the weight of the day, Uhtred goes over to check the patio door before he flops into bed. The sliding door doesn’t budge as he tests the handle, but his eye catches the glint of glass on the ground and he frowns at the ashtray. A single butt doesn’t seem like much to get upset over though and, having had his own share of gut-tensing anxiety lately, Uhtred cannot blame Finan.

His fingers work at the buttons of his shirt as he pads down the hallway in socked feet. The dogs are staying with Stiorra’s roommate for the weekend and it’s odd not to hear their nails scuffling on the floor after him into the bedroom. Not that he would admit it to Finan, but Uhtred may already miss the slobbering jackasses and he had just dropped them off this morning.

Uhtred would prefer to wait for Finan to get home, but he can barely keep his eyes open as he sits on their bed to take his socks off. When he straightens and stretches his shoulders he feels a deep crack in his back and he lays back groaning onto his pillow. The sheets are cool and smell faintly of Finan’s shampoo, some bizarre sounding brand Eadith had recommended. Uhtred is still musing over the name on the brightly coloured bottle when sleep sneaks up and sucks him under.

—

Finan tries not to slam the door of the Uber as he steps away. The car drives off and Finan takes a few deep breaths of cold air before he starts up the slanted driveway.

“Oh Jesus,” he mutters as he gets to the stairs. All the lights are off in the house, but Finan isn’t too surprised, it’s late. Really late. Fiddling with his keys, Finan manages to finally find the right one and he stumbles through the door only making about twice as much noise as normal. Shushing himself, Finan closes and locks the door before dropping his keys trying to hang them on the hook. Shrugging, Finan takes the loss and slips off his shoes before wandering into the kitchen. He and Sihtric had eaten at the bar and the combination of several litres of beer and half the bar’s greasy menu has him ready for bed.

He’s halfway to the bedroom before he misses the dogs and it’s a few more steps before he remembers they’re with Stiorra’s nice, but odd roommate. Nodding to himself, Finan pushes open the bedroom door quietly and stops at the end of the bed. The porch light manages to penetrate the vertical blinds enough for Finan to clearly see Uhtred laying on his side, the outline of his features striking against the pillow. Sighing deeply, Finan pulls his t-shirt over his head and drops it at his feet. He crawls onto the bed as gently as he can to lie next to Uhtred.

“I hope you’re not trying to be stealthy,” Uhtred murmurs, his voice sleep laden. Grinning, Finan shifts closer, wrapping an arm around Uhtred’s middle and running his lips against the satin skin of Uhtred’s neck. Passing his tongue over a spot he knows is particularly sensitive, Finan gives into a sudden temptation and he sucks a rosy mark over Uhtred’s pulse. He suspects he’ll catch shit for it in the morning when Uhtred is truly awake, but in his semi-asleep state the Dane just moans underneath Finan’s mouth and the Irishman feels a possessive thrill skate up his spine.

Working Uhtred’s undershirt free from his pants, Finan helps him pull it free and drops the material over the side of the bed. With a firm hand on Uhtred’s shoulder, Finan encourages him onto his back and Finan settles on top of him, propped up on one hand. The other Finan uses to work at Uhtred’s pants.

“Finan,” Uhtred murmurs in weak protest even as he gasps at Finan’s tongue tracing the dip in his collarbone, “we have to be up in five hours.” 

“Won’t be a problem,” Finan murmurs huskily, trailing his lips along Uhtred’s shoulder and down his chest. Kissing and groping his way down Uhtred’s body, Finan listens for all of Uhtred’s obscene sounds. It was one of the first things Finan learned about Uhtred in this separate world that is just theirs, not only is Uhtred noisy, but his sounds alone nearly have the power to make Finan spill in his pants.

Kneeling on the mattress between Uhtred’s legs, Finan pushes their pants onto the floor and takes Uhtred’s cock into his mouth eagerly. Pleased at the slight jerk of Uhtred’s legs at the sudden surge of feeling, Finan goes slowly at first, using his tongue to trace lazy patterns over the silken skin. When Uhtred’s hands fist in the bedcovers, Finan feels that same secret delight he always does to see the powerful man fall apart beneath the Irishman’s hands, his mouth.

Uhtred retrieves the lube from the bedside table without Finan having to ask and interrupt the rhythm that has Uhtred arching his back off the bed. Coating two finger generously, Finan runs a single digit over the tender spot behind Uhtred’s balls and down between his cheeks before pressing into Uhtred slowly. Eyes on Uhtred’s face for signs of discomfort, Finan bites back his own groan at the debauched look on the other man’s face.

Uhtred’s breathing becomes more erratic as Finan adds a second digit and a slight crooking of both fingers combined with the tight suction of his mouth pushes Uhtred over the edge. Coaxing Uhtred down from his peak, Finan pulls back as the Dane’s shudders subside and focuses on the sight of his fingers as they sink into Uhtred’s flesh.

When he manages to tear his eyes away back to Uhtred’s face, his future husband is looking at him, eyes dazed and dark. Finan breathes out through his nose, free hand sliding along the top of Uhtred’s thigh feeling the muscles twitch and jump beneath his fingers.

“Finan.”

Finan will never tire of hearing his name fall from Uhtred’s lips, especially when his voice is a gasp of need. Retracting his fingers, Finan rises up to hold himself above Uhtred once more, still kneeling between his thighs. Finan slips an arm beneath Uhtred’s shoulder and grips his hair to hold him in place, so Finan can watch his face as the Irishman pushes himself into Uhtred’s welcoming body. Kissing him fervently, Finan tenses from overwhelming sensation and has to will himself to relax to avoid spilling like some green boy. Not that Uhtred hasn’t inspired such displays before, but tonight Finan needs to feel engulfed, consumed, by Uhtred for a little while longer to soothe the stress of the coming days.

Regardless of his intentions, Finan quickly loses himself in the heated pull of Uhtred’s body. The orgasm builds slowly, almost maddeningly, and when it crests, Finan presses his forehead hard into Uhtred’s shoulder gasping his name. Uhtred strokes Finan’s skin and runs his tongue along anywhere he can reach to ease the potency of his release. With laboured breathing, Finan pushes his forehead to Uhtred’s and closes his eyes for a moment, reveling in the boneless, heavy feeling.

Uhtred catches his breath first and brings a hand to Finan’s face. Opening his eyes, Finan catches a lighthearted glint in Uhtred’s soft, loving eyes before the Dane murmurs, “Stiorra knows you drag me dancing.”

Surprised into laughter with Uhtred, Finan shudders against at the vibrations and tightening of Uhtred’s body where they are still joined. Panting against Uhtred’s cheek, Finan grins playfully and says, “Well, let’s just hope her little spies didn’t follow us into the alley.”

\--

Finan stands on the sandy shore, looking out over the water as twilight descends on the lake. The trees on this side of the water are growing over and he thinks he may have scraped the paint on his truck coming through the dense foliage that is taking over the old service road. When he and Uhtred were teenagers the old dirt road had been their highway away from everything. Uhtred’s father had little interest in the forgotten corners of the sprawling property, something he and Uhtred had been profoundly grateful for.

After his parents had separated, Uhtred had been shuttled off to his father’s for the hottest months of the year and it was during one of these reluctant visits that he first met Finan and Sihtric. They had been thirteen, fourteen maybe, and wilder than Finan would maybe admit now. The Old Man (Bastard?) though, as Uhtred almost exclusively referred to his father, had even less interest in what Uhtred and his cronies got up to than he did in the bushes that populated his expansive property.

Bonded through their shared desire to be anywhere, but home, the trio spent countless hours roaming through the property and often spent nights camped out under the stars. It was a particularly welcome escape for Finan. After his father’s death, Finan’s older brother had gotten it into his thick head that he ruled all, especially Finan, and his brother was not the sort you wanted to have an ounce of power over you. Sihtric’s father was even worse, but thankfully Kjartan had died in a brutal bar fight not long after Sihtric’s mother passed and while Sihtric’s foster family were relatively normal, they never seemed overly concerned with how Sihtric spent his time either.

Finan knows he sees those memories through a romanticized lens now, there had been many ugly moments during those turbulent years, but he had gotten pretty efficient at cutting away the pieces that don’t matter anymore. Pieces that are dead and gone and haven’t been a part of him for a long time. After a few years, Uhtred had come to live with the Old Man full time. Life with his mother and Ragnar and his children was certainly more wholesome, but even then Uhtred and Finan were drawn together. Thinking on the beginning of their friendship has Finan thinking of other firsts. It wasn’t far from where he stands now that he had kissed Uhtred for the first time, among other things.

–

The only noise in the truck’s cab is the radio as Finan drives along the access road from the front of the property. As they enter the denser tree groves, the signal gets fuzzier until Uhtred leans forward from the passenger side of the bench seat and snaps off the volume. Behind his sunglasses, Finan glances over at Uhtred and swallows hard.

A friend of theirs had hosted a graduation party the day before and Finan, Uhtred and Sihtric had spent the day recovering from the revelry. They had started to feel human again after lunch and Sihtric, who was in the worst shape, lurched home to shower and die in his own bed. Finan had offered him a ride, but the other teen had refused, something about likely needing to throw up in the bushes on the way. Around three Uhtred’s father had pulled up in the driveway and the pair slipped out the back and headed for the lake. The sun is relentless and, like Finan, Uhtred wears only jean shorts to help with the heat. Finan’s truck is older than they are and the trees are blocking whatever breeze there had been when they set out, so the inside of the truck is already stuffy and Finan is looking forward to the refreshing coolness of the lake.

The temperature isn’t Finan’s only problem, however. He and Uhtred have been fooling around for weeks now and Finan is certain things are leading in pretty serious direction and the anticipation is almost too much. It’s all he can think about at home, at work and, most embarrassingly, almost constantly when he and Uhtred are together. And not even necessarily alone. All morning Finan had been sending mental waves to Sihtric encouraging their friend to head home early. He feels a little bit guilty about it, but Finan and Uhtred haven’t been alone together for any real time for almost a week, which is about six days too long for Finan.

Now with Uhtred sitting half naked about a foot away, Finan feels as though he’s going to jump out of his skin. He’s hoping a swim will help calm his eagerness, even a little. Pulling into his spot under the usual tree, Finan shuts off the motor and turns to say something to his passenger, but Uhtred is already sliding across the seat and grabbing the back of Finan’s neck before the words have a chance to leave his mouth.

Uhtred tastes of weed and the apple juice he’d lifted from the fridge on their way out the door and Finan has a hard time reaching all of him with the steering wheel in the way. He wants to suggest they move into the bed of the truck, there’s a sleeping bag back there for just these occasions, but his brain is having trouble forming coherent thoughts as Uhtred’s teeth nip at Finan’s bottom lip before sucking on it gently. Moaning into the kiss, Finan grabs at Uhtred’s sides, runs his hands over Uhtred’s back and he’s so hard he feels light-headed.

Managing to work his way into the middle seat, Finan gulps air when Uhtred pulls back from his assault for a moment to swing a knee over to straddle Finan on the cramped seat. Overwhelmed by the feel of Uhtred’s skin and the familiar scent of his body, Finan tries to pull back slightly, but then Uhtred slips a hand between their bodies and into Finan’s shorts and that’s all it takes. Grunting hard, Finan comes so suddenly the breath is knocked from his lungs and for the briefest moment he’s reminded of when he fell out of the tree in his grandmother’s front yard back in Ireland. He’d been dazed then too, but unlike then, Finan snaps out of it feeling slightly mortified.

An apology is already slipping past his lips, but Uhtred just grins triumphantly and kisses Finan harder. “It’s alright,” the Dane whispers raggedly against Finan’s mouth. Breathlessly, Uhtred leans back, resting against the dashboard. He doesn’t look upset at all, in fact Uhtred looks entirely too pleased with himself and Finan grins, pulling him back in to wipe that smug expression off his face.

\--

“Thought I might find you out here.” Finan turns to see Uhtred sauntering out of the trees, a wry smile on his face. Finan returns the smile and holds out a hand. Uhtred takes the outstretched digits and stands behind Finan, wrapping their joined hands around Finan’s middle and resting his chin on Finan’s shoulder. They watch the water together, listening to the hushed sounds of the forest at night for several moments.

“It feels like so long ago,” Finan utters wistfully, leaning back into the hard planes of Uhtred’s chest. Nodding, Uhtred hums in agreement as his stubble rasps against Finan’s neck.

“It was,” Uhtred affirms, “you still look pretty good though.” Finan huffs indignantly and he doesn’t need to turn to picture the grin that is surely on Uhtred’s face.

Sighing loudly, Finan pulls Uhtred’s arm tighter around him and says, “Is it alright if I say I’m glad it’s all over?” Uhtred chuckles quietly in his ear, the Dane’s breath dancing along Finan’s skin until he shivers.

“Yes, I think most people feel that way about weddings.”

“Well, you would know,” Finan responds, twisting to smirk at his husband. Rolling his eyes skyward, Uhtred takes the teasing well, tilting his head into Finan’s and giving a lopsided grin.

The ceremony had been beautiful, and the reception thoroughly crazed, despite the small size. Finan will be snickering about the expression on Brida’s face when Ragnar and Erik, both drunker than skunks, had come up behind and lifted her chair in the air for a lap around the dance floor. The speeches were lovely, Hild’s had left tears in more than one set of eyes, but catching Osferth in the stairwell with that server had easily been the highlight for Finan. Aside from the part when Finan married the love of his life, of course, and seeing Young Uhtred seated in the back during the ceremony hadn’t hurt either. The young man didn't stay for the reception, but he was in the building at least, which was more than they had expected.

“I think we should celebrate,” Uhtred suggests, pulling back from Finan.

Blinking, Finan turns and says, confused, “Isn’t that what this whole fiasco was about?”

“I was thinking something more nostalgic,” Uhtred says, raising his eyebrows suggestively as he grabs the hem of his black t-shirt and pulls it over his head. Following Uhtred’s eyes to the water, Finan is all smiles as he catches Uhtred’s meaning.

“I can get on board with that,” Finan agrees, taking Uhtred’s lead and toeing off his boots. Uhtred steps closer once more to help divest Finan of his clothes and soon Finan’s wondering if they will even make it off the beach. Breathless, Uhtred pulls away and walks backwards to the water, completely naked and beckoning Finan coyly. “Think I might just enjoy the view for a moment,” Finan calls, content to watch the moon’s dim light slide over Uhtred’s skin.

Laughing, Uhtred turns and walks into the lake without hesitation, throwing Finan a heated glance over his shoulder. Sucking in a deep breath and counting his incredible luck, Finan follows Uhtred, as he always has

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, we've reached the end after a fair amount of agonizing. Hope you all enjoyed it! Thank you for reading and for all the support, much love!! ♡
> 
> Apologies for any errors, as usual.
> 
> Cheers

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! It was definitely a different writing experience this time around, had to post just to stop from picking it apart. Hopefully you enjoyed it! ♡
> 
> Apologies for any errors.


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